Condos likely near Brooklyn Bridge Park

Increasingly, it appears as though the city will build additional condominiums to fund maintenance of the Brooklyn Bridge Park, despite community opposition. The Daily News reported that city officials recently cut the park’s budget 20 percent to $44 million, from the initial $55 million pledge, and said the remaining money could be in jeopardy unless politicians can come to an agreement and sign off on the condo project. A recent report suggests the park would require a $16 million annual upkeep budget, but that the park could only raise up to $7 million per annum if it depends strictly on new fees and parking revenue. “It seems clear from the final outcome of the report that some residential housing is needed on the site,” said Nancy Webster, executive director of the Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy. But local politicians vehemently opposed to condos, led by State Senator Daniel Squadron, say the budget slash calls into question the city’s commitment to the project. A spokesperson for Mayor Michael Bloomberg told the Daily News that the funding was cut as part of citywide budget issues, and pointed to the $130 million the administration has committed to the park. Squadron, on the other hand, sees the administration as focused on getting the housing, as evidenced by the report’s refusal to consider tax revenues from the forthcoming sale of the Watchtower properties in Dumbo in its analysis. [NYDN]